The Photo Album
by bluegirl-783
Summary: It's a time for happiness and joy; Clarisse and Joseph have just received their wedding album and it evokes memories of other pictures and other moments in their lives and how far they have come...
1. Prologue

_Another short story but this time it's about a photo album of memories; memories about their relationship and how far they have come from the beginning_

 _A/N: The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me!_

"What are you up to?"

Clarisse heard a voice from the doorway of her suite and she glanced up to see Joseph standing there, a broad smile on his face and she couldn't help but respond in the same way, always happy to see him. "You look awfully serious and absorbed in what you're reading- I would have thought you were have stopped reading official paperwork upon your retirement."

"Believe me, I'm trying to, although Mia and Charlotte are still seeking advice from me and I cannot say no to my only grandchild, can I?"

"Of course not, you should help her as much as you can," he suddenly looked sorry for what he had joked about as he made his way over to where she was sitting, and she couldn't help but smile smugly.

"However, I'm not actually reading official paperwork at the moment and I'm glad I'm not because I'm sure my husband wouldn't approve and would have something to say about it."

"Indeed he would have," he agreed as he sat down next to her and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. "He's just glad to hear it," he said with a grin before leaning forward again and giving her a tender kiss on the lips. "So," he said afterwards. "As I asked before, what are you doing?"

"Oh," she glanced down at the package in her lap, running her hands over the smooth cover of the rectangular package. "We got another wedding present this afternoon," she said, glancing down again, the silver cover catching her eye, as well as the title on the front.

"Oh? I thought we would have received all our presents by now," he said mildly- they had been married six weeks and most of the presents Mia and Andrew had received now belonged to Clarisse and Joseph, although the newlyweds were planning to donate quite a bit of it to charity, as a suggestion made by Joseph when he had seen the pile of presents a week after the coronation.

" _Why do we need any wedding presents? I'm married to a former Queen and we live in a palace."  
_

 _"It IS tradition," Clarisse reminded him as she glanced through the list of gifts and the people who had given them- she too had been somewhat taken aback by the pile of gifts, knowing that she already had enough from her first wedding, but she thought it would seem ungracious not to accept them, as she then said to her husband._

" _I'm not saying that we don't accept them, but we could also donate them to charity- I know Mia's Children's Charity always needs funds for the orphanage and other children's issues here in Genovia, and there's always Phillipe's foundation…."_

Of course, there had been some slack in the press and the parliament when they found out about the royal couple's intentions, but after discovering that the funds received from the presents (they were usually auctioned off) were going to charities close to the royal family's heart, there wasn't much more said about the matter.

The former Viscount Mabrey had tried, of course, to win back favour by causing trouble, stating that _"the presents should be returned to the givers rather than being donated,"_ but once it became clear that none of the gift givers were insisting on the gifts being returned, and the obvious pleasure shown when the donations were given, the fuss died away and had all but been forgotten… except that Clarisse and Joseph were now the unofficial patrons of the charities that they had donated to….

"I thought so too," Clarisse said thoughtfully, coming back to the present and indicating the silver book as Joseph reached out and touched it before resting his hand on top of hers.

"You have obviously opened it…" he teased, waving towards the small pile of gold and silver wrapping paper sitting on her other side. "So, what is it?"

"Our wedding album… from Andrew," she said softly, turning to look at him with a shy smile, which he returned just as shyly.

"I wondered whether that would come, or it would be sold to the papers," he joked gently but they both knew that Andrew would never sell the pictures to the paper- they were valuable in terms of monetary value, but they were much more precious to the bride and groom in question- they were the first pictures they had as an official couple, as a married couple…

"Well, he obviously wanted to take his time with this… and I can tell you that it's well worth the wait."

"Well… are you going to open it and show me or am I going to have to wait until our first anniversary?" he teased, sitting back on the sofa, an arm resting around her shoulders and Clarisse snuggled in, resting the album on their laps, between them.

"Of course, Mr Impatient."

"Me- Mr Impatient? I'm the one who just got here, you spring this on me and… I'm Mr Impatient?"

"Oh be quiet," she nudged him with an elbow. "Do you want to see this or not?"

"Of course, so I'll be quiet," and he was just as that as he watched her open the cover and suddenly Joseph came face to face with their first wedding picture… a picture of them out in the garden, kissing and seemingly completely unaware that they were being photographed….

"Wow," he murmured in amazement- he could remember the moment perfectly, they were trying not to feel self-conscious that they were being photographed by Andrew, the young man who, only hours earlier, had been going to be Clarisse's grandson-in-law but who was now not married to Mia and was instead taking their photograph…

He could also remember feeling very self-conscious of the fact that the Queen of Genovia was now his wife and that he was actually allowed to kiss her and touch her in ways that they had been dreaming about for years but hadn't as yet… he had been trying not to act like a fool in front of either Clarisse or Andrew… he wasn't sure how to behave but Clarisse, sensing his discomfort, had squeezed his hand comfortingly from time to time, making him feeling a little more reassured….

"It's a wonderful picture, isn't it?" she asked gently, bringing him back to the present and watching his face, seeing the exact same expression and emotion flit across it as she had felt when she had first looked at it… joy, happiness, tenderness…

Of course, she had wanted to wait for Joseph and they could have flipped through it together, enjoying it for the first time together, but she had been so excited to receive it, she hadn't been able to wait, a fact that made her feel guilty and slightly abashed.

"I'm sorry, I should have waited for you to return from your meeting, but I couldn't wait…"

"I don't blame you for not waiting, you deserved to have the first look…and indeed it is a wonderful picture…"

"What were you thinking when you looked at it?"

"I just could remember how self-conscious I felt, trying to kiss you properly and knowing that Andrew was taking pictures of us….but you were so patient and so comforting, squeezing my hand from time to time…"

"I knew you hadn't foreseen this from happening, us finally being together, married…."

"I have to admit, I hadn't woken up that morning and thought: _'Clarisse and I will be man and wife by the end of the day!'_ " he admitted with a chuckle.

"No, I hadn't thought of that either," she agreed. "But I just felt… light… happy… wonderful… I was just happy standing there with you, I could barely even register Andrew being there with us…and I could feel your tension… while I'm used to having pictures taken, this was different and I have to admit that I too felt a little awkward… I mean, I never particularly liked people taking intimate pictures of me, particularly ones of me kissing my husband (not that that was a problem with Rupert- he didn't believe it at all)…but it was Andrew doing it, he's a nice young man and I knew that he would do a good job."

"Which he did."

"You've only seen one picture!"

"Nevertheless, I assume that the rest of them will be just as good…."

"You'll just have to wait and see, won't you?"


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Thanks to all my readers and reviewers- this is not going to be a really long story (although I am due to write another one soon and I am working on some ideas) but I just thought I would try this story, simple and sweet._

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me!_

The rest of their wedding album was just as well photographed and carefully put together as the first photograph, and Joseph and Clarisse fully appreciated all the work and detail that Andrew had put into it.

"He certainly is a talented young man," Joseph said as they looked at the pictures of them at the wedding reception- Andrew had obviously taken a few pictures of the other guests (and both Joseph and Clarisse were thankful that Viscount Mabrey hadn't attempted to make an appearance after being ousted from the church by the royal guards) but most of his attention was focused on the bride and groom and ensuring that they weren't too self-conscience while taking photos of them, but as Joseph commented, he hadn't really noticed him at all.

"Yes, I did seem some flashes and there were some times when we actually had to look at the camera, but he did do a good job of staying in the background."

"I think he was more relieved that he wasn't the centre of attention, as he would have been if he and Mia had married," Clarisse said with a chuckle, although she didn't blame him, considering the attention that they two of them had received _prior_ to the wedding, mostly thanks to Mia.

"Well, Mia was happy to try and deflect some of the attention of us," Joseph said with a wry smile and Clarisse couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Thankfully, she changed out of her wedding dress and was a very gracious hostess, but the karaoke at the reception… a little too much."

"Well, at least she distracted the guests so we could sneak away," he teased, running his hand over the back of her neck and Clarisse shivered at the sensation.

"True, and the speech she made was quite lovely….."

"Well, I guess she assumed that I would be too shell shocked to want to make a speech…."

"Were you? Shell shocked?" she turned away from the album- she could look at it all day, knowing that it hadn't been a dream and that she and Joseph really were married!

"Hmmm…in a way I was- I hadn't actually been expecting to marry you that day… although I would have hoped, eventually, that you would have forgiven me and we could have been married…"

"There was nothing to forgive," Clarisse said gently, touching his lips with her fingertips. "My fear…."

"…and my stubbornness…"

"…wouldn't have kept us apart- I would have come to you as soon as I was able… probably as soon as the wedding reception was over."

"While I would have whisked you off DURING the reception, although that was only something I COULD have done, I probably was afraid that you weren't go to speak to me again and I didn't want to make the situation any worse by taking you away from the reception earlier than usual."

"I wouldn't have minded…" she snuggled in for a moment and lightly kissed his neck, before pulling away again. "So, back to the original question- were you shell shocked at the reception?"

"A little…but then, you were there beside me, never leaving me except when strictly necessary…"

"Dancing with those parliamentarians," Clarisse grumbled to herself.

"Which you had to do….and I was a little jealous about."

"A little?" Clarisse cocked her head to side as she gazed at him and he chuckled sheepishly.

"Alright, I was more than a little jealous, how dare they hold my wife like that, dance with er and try to hit on her…"

"There were only a few of them, most of them are much too old or too young for me…"

"But then, I remembered that…" before he stopped, instantly piquing Clarisse's interest.

"You remembered what? You cannot just stop a sentence like that!"

"Sorry, dear. I was just thinking that…while they can dance with you, hold you like that and try to hit on you, I can dance with you _all the time_ , I can hold you _all the time_ and I'm the one you go home with when the night ends."

"Oh Joseph, that is so true!" Clarisse cried emotionally before flinging her arms around him and kissing him, a kiss that had the potential to take them further away from the world (and they both knew that the connection they had was special and different) but Joseph instead gently pushed her away.

"While I would like to continue THAT conversation, I would like to see the rest of the photo album."

"Of course," before they continued flipping through the pages, pausing at the page where they were enjoying their first dance as husband and wife, a moment that Andrew interpreted as taking a few extra pictures from different perspectives, something Joseph appreciated.

"It's amazing how many photographs can be taken for one simple activity," he said as he perused the pictures- there was one of them side on (which was the main picture of the page) and then there were others from Joseph's view and Clarisse's view and even a long distance one. "I can't even remember him doing that…."

"That's because you were too involved in my feminine wiles…" she teased and he laughed.

"Well… I may have to agree with you there….." although he wasn't about to admit that he couldn't believe that he was actually holding Clarisse in his arms, in public and no one was making a fuss about it.

00

" _Are you alright?" Clarisse asked gently as they settled on the dance floor- since it was their first dance, they would be the only ones on the dance floor- and settled into a rhythm that they were comfortable with, which was easy as they had always been able to dance together with no problems, they had always been comfortable in that way._

 _She had never been so happy in her life (well, aside from the births of her two sons as well as getting to know Mia again) and all that mattered to her at this time, at this moment, was that she and Joseph were married and on the dance floor, sharing their first dance, his arms wrapped around her._

 _However, glancing quickly at Joseph, she had to make sure that he was feeling alright, he certainly hadn't expected to be shoved into the limelight so soon (they hadn't even been talking this morning) and she wanted him to be as happy as she was._

" _I'm fine," he gave her a small smile, his eyes sparkling but she could sense that he felt self-conscience._

" _Are you sure? I know you weren't expecting this…"  
_

 _"Clarisse, I'm fine," he gave her a gentle smile and she suddenly felt somewhat more reassured. "Yes, it has been rather a busy and eventful day but I'm okay, I'm enjoying this… mostly..." he shot a sidelong glance at some of the members of parliament who were watching them dance and Clarisse could tell he felt a little uncomfortable around them. "…But all the stares and conversations are all outweighed by the fact that we're dancing together and no one is making a fuss."  
_

 _"Why should they? We were married in front of them this afternoon, in front of the Archbishop, in church, so they can't really say anything, can they? Even if they did, it doesn't matter…all that matters is that we're happy… I'm happy- are you happy?"  
_

 _"Indescribably," he smiled tenderly at her, feeling his heart skip a beat as she returned the smile, looking radiant before he pulled her ever so closer. "So, we can definitely enjoy this dance."  
_

 _"Good."_

.

00

"It was a wonderful evening, a wonderful day…." Clarisse said dreamily once they closed the album- the last picture being of them sneaking out of the reception, hand in hand and their backs towards the camera, something Joseph didn't know had happened.

"Yes, indeed it was… but how did he manage to take that picture? I thought no one saw us leave."

"He must have… but you really don't mind that he took it, do you?" Clarisse looked at him anxiously- she loved the picture, it showed that they were walking out of the reception, walking into their new lives together….

"No, no," he said hastily, sensing her anxiety. "I just thought we were sneakier than that."

"Obviously not," she said with a smile, closing the album and resting it back on her lap. "I'm glad Andrew did this…. There were so many memories packed into the day, I'm glad that Andrew managed to capture them…"

"It's only the beginning," Joseph smiled tenderly at her and it was his turn to lean forward and give her a gentle kiss on the lips.

"Only the beginning," she murmured between kisses. "I like the sound of that."

"As do I, my darling, as do I."


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: Thanks to all my readers and reviewers- you all rock!_

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me_

"I'm glad that we have this," Clarisse said after a moment, gently caressing the album cover again.

"As am I… sometimes this- you and me- seems like a dream, a dream that I'm going to wake up from and discover that it hasn't happened… that we're still trying to get our act together in regards to our relationship."

"'Get our act together?' Where did you come up with a phrase like that?" Clarisse chuckled ruefully.

"I'm not quite sure… although I'm sure I heard Scott say it on more than one occasion…."

"About our relationship?" she looked momentarily horrified- she knew that their relationship, despite their discretion, had been an open secret in the palace (much to her embarrassment) but to have it openly discussed…..

"No, no- not about our relationship," Joseph was quick to reassure her. "In other instances- for example, when some of our men let us down on the job…."

"I would have thought that you would have been the one to do that," Clarisse teased.

"Maybe I was… but obviously Scott learnt it from me…"

"I would have liked to have seen you give the lecture…"

"Believe me, I don't think so… although I did come close to telling you that a couple of times!"

"Oh really?" Clarisse laughed, her eyebrow arching playfully. "I would have liked to see you try that!"

"What would you have done if I had?" he teased.

"I'm not quite sure," she said playfully, tipping her head to the side and pretending to look thoughtful. "I could have fired you…"

"I would have liked to see you try…" he almost growled, wrapping an arm around her waist and nuzzling her neck, Clarisse closing her eyes in pleasure- she loved when he did that.

"Mmmm….I'm not quite sure I would have done that anyway…especially if you had been doing that…."

"I have some tricks of my own…" he teased in a low voice as he slowly moved his lips further down her neck, pushing her collar back.

"As I have discovered… but to return to the original conversation…"

"Which was what?" he teased as he lightly nipped her ear and she chuckled before pushing him away.

"I too often worry about this being only a dream…"

"Well, thankfully we don't need to worry about that… we are living our happily ever after…" and he kissed her lightly on the cheek before glancing back down at the photo album. "So, where are we planning on keeping this? Down in the library with the others?"

"Oh, of course not!" Clarisse looked slightly horrified- there were at least two dozen photo albums down in the library, documenting the lives of the royal family for the past few generations (including her own family) and while she had specific photographs of her sons and other relatives (not that there were many) on display in her suite and around the palace, she had no intention of revisiting some very painful memories or even revisiting the previous generations of Renaldis.

She had had to view them when she first married into the royal family, and Rupert had insisted on the boys knowing every detail about their history, but she hadn't seen many of them in years and really hadn't wanted to, although she had to admit that it would be interesting to revisit some of them, particularly of her children and the early years…..

"You look thoughtful," Joseph had been watching her for a few minutes, knowing that she was in a deep reverie (and he thought that she looked beautiful deep in thought) but she gave a start when he spoke to her. "What are you thinking about?"

"Oh, nothing in particular… I was just thinking that I would like to keep our album up here, in the suite…. It's personal and it belongs to just us."

"You wouldn't let Mia have a look at it if she wants? Or Pierre?"

"Yes, of course they can but I just want something that belongs to _us_ and no one else."

"Fair enough…. I think it should belong up here as well…" he caressed her cheek gently. "But you were also thinking about something else, you look so serious….."

"Oh… I was just thinking about those other albums down stairs…. Did you know that there are at least two dozen there, and not only photographs but newspaper clippings as well…."

"Well, the history of the Renaldi family needs to be covered, from a historic point of view….how many are there of you and the family?"

"About three or four, maybe more- I'm not quite sure…" Clarisse looked pensive. "I haven't seen them in a long time…."

"Why not?" he looked curious.

"Well, I took some of my favourite photos and had copies made- and they're around where I can see them," she waved a hand towards the photo frame collection sitting on a nearby cabinet, pictures of her sons and Mia among them. "I haven't had the need to go down and revisit the past."

"Haven't had the need or not wanted to?"

"I really haven't wanted to, to be honest. Why revisit painful memories?" She shrugged carelessly, looking away before he guided her face back towards his.

"That's true, but it's also important to remember that there were also not so painful memories as well… your sons and there were probably times when you and Rupert were happy."

"I suppose…."

"Have you shown Mia these albums yet?"

"I was going to do so after the coronation, but then things…"

"Things changed before you could… Have you thought about doing it soon?"

"I had, when Mia had time… but why are you so fascinated with the albums? Do you want to see them?"

"I wouldn't mind," Joseph shrugged, trying not to look too eager but he was interested in seeing the albums, representatives of the life his wife had lead before they had married… and there were probably some from when she was young.

"Really?" Clarisse was a little perplexed as to why Joseph was so interested in the albums.

"Really," he affirmed with a nod. "You may be a little curious as to why I am so interested in these albums."

"A little… why?"

"Because I want to know about your history- I haven't been here for all of your reign- and I want to learn more about the history of my country...Now, what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking…..that we should go and look at some of these albums," before she stood up and held out a hand for him, smiling at him. "I think it sounds like a good idea."


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: Thanks to all my readers and reviewers- you all rock!_

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me_

The palace hallways were empty as they walked through the hallways and down the stairs towards the library, hand in hand- the staff were usually busy in other areas of the palace, Mia was in a session of parliament, the security team were either in the hub or walking around the grounds (cameras kept the inside of the palace safe).

"It still feels strange that I am able to walk at your side, hand in hand," he commented as they walked down the stairs and Clarisse laughed.

"You were doing that a long time before we actually got married- and the palace staff knew it."

"Yes, I would take my hat off to them and their discretion, they never said a word."

"Fear of you, I imagine."

"Maybe, but more likely respect for you and wanting you to be happy."

"Mmmm… I still think they were more worried about your wrath," she teased as, upon approaching the library doors, the guards outside opened the doors for them, and she gave him a coy look as she stepped inside, Joseph close behind her.

"Are you being cheeky, Madam Bonnell?" he teased, reaching for her once the doors were closed behind him and she chuckled as he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist and nuzzled her neck playfully.

"Maybe, a little… but you like it, don't you?" she turned in his arms to face him and wrapped her arms around his neck- she had never been able to play and tease and flirt like this before and she was finding that she was enjoying it immensely.

"I do, very, very much so," he murmured before kissing her lightly on the lips before pushing her gently away. "Now, about these photo albums…."

"Alright, alright…" She pretended to grumble before she started walking towards one of the book shelves and, after bending down, pulled a heavy, green covered album out from the shelf level with the floor.

"How do you know which one is which?" Joseph inquired as she took it over to the coffee table in front of the sofa and sat it down before sitting down herself, Joseph following suit.

"The older albums are higher up," she said simply. "They're more historic, considered more important apparently- that was what Rupert and my mother in law told me time and again- so that's why they are there, although there was talk, not long ago, of archiving them in the library so that others can look through them. Parliament and Rupert, of course, didn't think that it was going to work, so here they are."

"Have you thought about trying again? They really should be in a museum or something."

"That's something that Mia can try, I think- a different generation, new ideas and they should be more amenable now… except for maybe a few of them."

"Mia should be able to charm them… so, which album is this one? Where do you come in on it?"

"This album is my wedding album with Rupert, which is where I first come in on it, as you would say," she said matter of factly, opening the cover and brushing back the tissue paper that covered the first picture, which was….

"There we are, just after the wedding," she said quietly- she hadn't seen these pictures in quite a long time (not that she had wanted to, considering how difficult and unhappy their marriage had been) but now, given some distance and considering the fact that she was happier now than ever, she could look at the pictures with some objectivity.

The first picture was a posed one of her and Rupert, just after the ceremony, and she could see that her eighteen year old self was overwhelmed, scared and sad. She hadn't wanted to be married so young- although she had known, since she was 10, that she was betrothed to the Crown Prince- but she had had no choice in the matter, her parents had wanted it, the royal family had wanted it, the country had wanted it and she had simply been a pawn in the game, something she hadn't realised until much, much later.

"You look thoughtful," came Joseph's voice from far away and Clarisse shook her head before turning to look at him. "What are you thinking about?"

"I was just thinking…. I was a little girl in that picture, a child playing dress ups and pretending to be a bride," she looked back at the picture and it was true- she looked young and innocent, too young to be the Crown Princess of Genovia, the future Queen.

"You look beautiful," he said softly, speaking the truth- she had always been a beautiful woman, even back then, but age and motherhood had taken her beauty and matured it, making her more womanly. "You were certainly a lovely young woman back then."

"Are you saying that I don't look as lovely now?" she teased, with a small smile on her face and he laughed.

"You know that, to me, you are the most beautiful woman in the world and you were back then as well, but age and motherhood made you even more beautiful."

"Thank you," she blushed before her mind drifted away again, recalling her wedding day- it wasn't necessarily painful anymore, and she could see it more objectively…. It hadn't been the best day of her life (or even the happiest) but there had been some nice moments during the day, especially with Rupert…..

 _00_

" _You look beautiful," Rupert said gently as they exited the church and made their way to the reception area where they would greet their guests before moving on to the Archbishop's study to sign the register._

" _Thank you," Clarisse said softly, looking down- she had never felt so self-conscious as when they were walking back down the aisle, arm in arm, and everyone staring at them. She was going to have to get used to that, she told herself, now that she was Rupert's wife, the Crown Princess of Genovia and future Queen, a lot more people would be watching her, watching her every move, what she did, saw, said and wore and the thought depressed her, even on her wedding day. Her life was no longer her own- she belonged to the country._

" _I mean it, Clarisse," he said sincerely, lifting her chin up so that she was looking into his eyes. "I have never seen a more beautiful bride…and I am very proud of you."  
_

 _"Why are you proud of me?"  
_

 _"Because today couldn't have been easy for you and you handled it all with dignity and grace…I know you are not used to everyone staring at you, but you know that this will be your life from now on, don't you?"  
_

 _"Yes."  
_

 _"Well, I will do what I can to help you… I will always be there for you, I promise you that," he said simply, before leaning over and kissing her gently on the cheek._

 _00_

"In lots of ways, he was there for me… but not in the ways that I, as a young woman, expected. Yes, he had other mistresses; yes, he was hard on his sons; yes, he wasn't always good to me and often didn't listen to me… but once I came to an understanding of who he was, who I was and the limits of our marriage and relationship, things… became easier."

"But you didn't deserve all that he did to you."

"No I didn't… but in retrospect, he just didn't have it in him to give me what I wanted…and I now understand better now that I have what I need from you…" she reached over and squeezed his hand tightly.

"I'm glad that I can give it to you."

"You give me more than I deserve," she said simply and he reached over and caressed her cheek gently.

"No, I give you exactly what you deserve," he said gently, leaning over to kiss her. "But, in regards to Rupert," he waved back at the photograph. "You were friends, I can see that."

"Arranged marriages are hardly conducive to producing romance…and I had to accept that…but then again, if I hadn't been married to Rupert, I would never have met you and fallen in love with you."

"Touché!" he laughed before they continued to flip through the photo album, which was seemingly devoted to the wedding and the wedding reception. "Wow!"

"What?"

"Nothing… it's just that I didn't realise how dour the Queen was…."

He pointed to a picture of the newlyweds with both sets of parents and Clarisse smiled- her mother in law hadn't been the most warm and affectionate woman in the world, but she had always been pleasant… most of the time, anyway.

"I have to admit, that's not a great picture of her… but while she wasn't the warmest woman in the world, she was pleasant and did help me a great deal."

"So you had your own version of princess lessons?" he teased, referring to the title Mia had applied to the lessons she had received from Clarisse in San Francisco, and which had continued whenever she visited Genovia during her holidays."

"Yes I did, although I didn't refer to them as that," she chuckled sheepishly.

"What did you call them?"

"Etiquette lessons," she said simply. "Old fashioned, I know, but that was what she was teaching me."

"What did were you taught? The same as you taught Mia?"

"In a way," Clarisse said thoughtfully after a moment. "I had been to finishing school once I had finished school, so I had the necessary skills- posture, dress, speaking- to be a Princess but Her Majesty felt that I needed additional polishing… and then there were all the reading and history lessons!"

"How did you feel about all of that?"

"I have to admit, I had great empathy for Mia when I was doing the same to her…there was so much to learn, so much to do and once I was married, I felt that I had to be perfect, especially considering that I knew everyone was watching me, waiting for me to make a mistake…"

"But you never really did, not that I saw," and she smiled distantly at him, although her mind was far, far away.

"You are very sweet, but I made so many mistakes when I was younger, it was frustrating and I could feel the pressure from everyone else to make sure that I was perfect… I couldn't let the family and the country down… but now, as Queen myself, I could see what they were talking about…but I DO feel guilty about pushing Mia so hard."

"You didn't push her too hard… and I know that she appreciates what you have done for her."

"I hope so," she said with a sigh before returning her attention back to the photo album. She couldn't remember most of the pictures taken at the wedding reception- the day had been such a blur, she had been trying to keep herself together and be the perfect bride, so it was almost as if she was seeing them for the first time as well as Joseph.

"It was quite an occasion," he said once they had reached the last page.

"Indeed- the marriage of the Crown Prince was quite the big deal at the time… do you remember much about it?"

"It was televised and on all of the papers, so it was really hard to miss," he said pensively. "I was at college but there was a public holiday… I wasn't really into the royal family or any of that at the time but I did watch some of it and thought that you looked beautiful."

"You did?" she asked, giving him a shy smile, blushing slightly at the thought that her second husband had watched her marry her first husband.

"I did…" he confirmed with an equally as coy smile. "But I didn't imagine that I would be married to that same, beautiful lady many, many years later."

"Yes, that's a funny thought, isn't it?" she crinkled her nose in amusement.

"But a good thought."

"Yes, a good thought," she affirmed, reaching over and squeezing his hand again. "A very, very good thought."


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: Thanks to my readers and reviewers!_

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me!_

"What's in this one?" Joseph asked after Clarisse had returned the first album back to the shelf and had brought back a second album- she hated to admit it, but looking through these albums had brought back a lot of memories, good and bad, and she was enjoying looking back and seeing how far she had come in the years. She was also enjoying showing Joseph her past- she knew that he knew almost all about her, but he had never seen many pictures of her before he had come to the palace, pictorial evidence of her life.

"This one," she said as she sat back down next to him. "Is one of the many albums I have on the boys…I have some of my favourite pictures of them in my suite, library and study, but there are so many more in these albums. It was important to document every part of the boys' lives, as a part of history and the history of the Renaldi family, as Rupert said," she said, still remembering when he had told her that, early in their marriage and just before Pierre was born.

" _Our children will the future of this country and, as such, every part of their lives needs to be documented in pictures…it happened to me and it has happened for generations past…and you will also be able to look back when they're older," he added with a gentle smile at her…_

"Of course, I had no choice but to agree to it, although… in retrospect, he was right- I did enjoy looking back at the boys' lives and how they had grown and what they had done as they grew up…."

She paused for a moment- she hadn't looked in some of these albums in years, particularly since the accident and it had been far too painful to look at any pictures of Phillipe when he was growing up- she was actually a little nervous about it now, although she had come to accept his death.

"Are you alright?" Joseph asked, pressing a gentle hand on her shoulder- he could see that she was a little nervous about looking in these albums, considering that one of her sons was dead and he was worried that he had pushed her too far- before she looked at him with a smile.

"I'm fine, I was just thinking that it's been too long since I looked through these albums…"

"Are you worried about seeing Phillipe in them?"

"I used to be, that's why I never looked at them for years after his death but now…Mia is back in my life, you're permanently in my life and Pierre has returned, I finally know that I need to let go of my grief, Phillipe wouldn't want that."

"You don't have to stop grieving for him, though."

"I know that, but he would always want me to be happy and to remember him the way he was, not the way he was killed, and I think that's the right way to remember him."

"And a healthy way as well."

She took a deep breath in- she _was_ a little nervous about what she was about to see, although all those pictures were engraved on her memory forever- before she opened the cover and brushed the tissue paper away….

"Pierre," she said in an almost reverent voice as two sets of eyes came to rest on a black and white photograph of Pierre as a baby….his christening, Clarisse remembered.

"He was quite adorable as a baby, wasn't he?" Joseph said with a chuckle- it was hard to reconcile the tall, serious man he knew now to the baby in the picture but he knew that Clarisse, as his mother, could reconcile both of them in a heartbeat.

"He was always a serious and quiet baby, although quite playful when he wanted to be," she said in an almost far away voice, her eyes gazing at the picture but her memory far, far way. "He was born in the middle of a stormy night- about one o'clock in the morning- and Rupert was ecstatic…of course, he wasn't there, it wasn't done in those days, but he was downstairs in the study and he was the first to see him…."

"Was he born in hospital?"

"Yes- I wanted to have him here, but it wasn't done anymore either and, in retrospect, Rupert was right, I couldn't have had him at the palace."

"Were you alright?"

"Fine, there were no complications… although there were some with Phillipe and I had to stay in hospital for a week or so….but, anyway, Pierre was a good baby and the entire country rejoiced when they realised his arrival…."

000

" _A son! A son! My heir! A Prince of the Realm!" Rupert was unusually ebullient when he visited Clarisse the morning after the baby was born and Clarisse was sitting up in bed, waiting to see her son for the first time- she had gone to sleep almost as soon as she was able._

" _You are pleased, then?" she asked quietly, delighted that her husband was pleased but still very tired and anxious to see her son._

" _Of course, my dear, I'm delighted!" he leaned over and gave her a sweet kiss to her forehead. "You gave me a son, it's what the Renaldi family does and our family is secure! The papers are going wild with the news and I believe that, when you return to the palace, you will find that the place is overrun with flowers and gifts!"_

" _Oh," was all she said before there was movement outside the door and a nurse then wheeled in a special cot….and their son was lying inside._

" _Hello… Pierre," Rupert was first to lean down and beam at him- they had long since decided on a name, Rupert refusing to consider a girl's name. "You're quite handsome, aren't you?"_

" _Yes he is, Your Highness, he's quite the handsome young man," the nurse said jovially before scooping him professionally out of the cot and moving towards Clarisse, sitting upright in bed._

" _Here you are, Your Highness… your son," she settled the bundle in Clarisse's waiting arms before moving away, not that Clarisse noticed- the moment she set eyes on her baby son, she fell in love and knew that she had always been meant to be a mother…._

 _000_

That was one of the happiest days of my life, meeting my Pierre," she said softly, a tear falling down her cheek at the memory and Joseph reached out and gently brushed it away before Clarisse turned to smile at him, a happy smile. "I never realised it until that moment, but being a mother was all I ever wanted to do…."

"And you have been a terrific mother."

"Much of the time," her eyes clouded over as she recalled not being able to contact Pierre when he first abdicated- it was only when Rupert got really sick and began to soften, that she was allowed to contact him again, but it was something that Clarisse would never forgive Rupert for doing.

"All of the time," he amended with a gentle squeeze of her hand. "Pierre understood why you couldn't keep in touch."

"I should have fought harder for him, I should have overridden Rupert…"

"But then he would have made your life even more miserable and you know it. You know," Joseph said after a moment's consideration, wondering if he could tell her what Pierre had asked him to do when he left, and decided that he would- she deserved to know. "Pierre came to me before he left and asked me to look after you…."

"He did?" Clarisse looked at him with wide eyes. "When? What did he say?"

000

" _Joseph?" came from the doorway of his office, and Joseph looked up to see Prince Pierre standing there, looking tired and drawn._

" _Your Highness," he said immediately, standing up as Pierre gave him a tired smile._

" _Not anymore, remember Joe?" and Joseph immediately remembered that the abdication had been released to the press only that morning, having been passed in parliament in last night's emergency session of parliament. The tension in the palace was almost unbearable- Rupert was seething, barely speaking to anyone, Clarisse was quiet and sad and Phillipe was trying to keep the situation calm, although he was openly supporting his brother._

" _I'm sorry… but what can I do for you?"  
_

 _"I just wanted to ask you for a favour."  
_

 _"Of course," he moved to close the door behind the young man before returning to his desk and sitting back down, as soon as Pierre had sat down._

" _As you know, I have been stripped of my title and have been told to leave the country."  
_

 _"I was aware of that," Joseph said quietly- Clarisse had been hysterical when she had told him about parliament's decision the night before and he had been worried about both of them, Clarisse because she never became hysterical and Pierre for his future._

" _I'm leaving at the end of the week and going to the theology college I had enrolled in… I still will become a priest, no matter whether I'm allowed home or not."  
_

 _"Good for you," Joseph said enthusiastically and supportively- he was fully behind Pierre, no matter what._

" _I want you to look after Mother… Phillipe is doing his best but she is going to need someone when I'm gone…and I know she trusts you more than anyone else… I just want you to look after her and be there for when she needs you…although I know that you will, you always have been."  
_

 _"I'll do that, I promise."  
_

 _"I also want you to let Mother know, at the right time, that I didn't blame her for any of this…she wanted to stand up for me but I don't want her to… I know that Father will make things extremely difficult for her and I don't want that for her. "  
_

 _"I'll tell her that. But you take care yourself as well… and I want you to keep in touch with me…I will pass your messages onto your mother."  
_

 _"You would really do that, for me? I don't want you to get into trouble with my father."_

" _I won't get into trouble with your father…your mother is my boss and I answer to her."_

" _Of course… it would be a privilege."  
_

 _"Thank you, Joe, thank you so much."_

 _000_

"He really wasn't angry at me for not standing up to me?" Clarisse asked in a quiet voice, her eyes shimmering with tears.

"No, he wasn't…he didn't want you to blame yourself, he knew that you loved him."

"I always felt so bad….but I was also worried that you would get into trouble through passing Pierre's messages to me."

"I wasn't….I had every right to keep in contact with Pierre, and if you happened to get messages, it was because I wanted to tell you," he said with a touch of belligerence- it always bothered him that Rupert had felt the need to ban his wife and son from any contact with Pierre (although he knew Phillipe had ignored his father and had openly kept in touch with his brother) and it was partly through his annoyance that he had insisted on keeping in touch with Pierre. "I wasn't afraid of him."

"He knew that too," Clarisse said with a smile- Rupert had often demanded that she fire him but she had never had a reason to and she wouldn't have anyway. "But… thank you for keeping in touch with him and passing his messages on… I truly appreciated it."

"I did it for you and for him, that's all," he said simply.

"Oh Joseph, I do love you," she said emotionally and he smiled as he leaned over and rested his forehead against hers.

"I love you too."


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: Thanks to all my readers and reviewers- you all rock!_

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me_

"This is my favourite," Clarisse said after a moment of scanning the next page and she pointed out the picture to Joseph, smiling tenderly at the picture and the memories it evoked… it was a picture of the family, on the christening day of Phillipe- Rupert was holding Pierre in his arms (one of the rare times when he actually picked one of his sons up) and Clarisse was holding baby Phillipe in her arms.

"You look beautiful in that picture," Joseph said admiringly. "I have to admit, you made a very handsome family."

"That's what a lot of people said, including Rupert's parents, and I know Rupert was very proud of the fact that the boys were, according to him, 'very photogenic' but I preferred to keep them out of sight most of the time, although I was usually overruled."

"I would have wanted to keep them out of sight as well, I can still remember thinking that it seemed that the royal family was in the newspapers almost weekly, if not daily…"

"Most of the time we were, but I tried to limit the boys exposure, particularly when they were little."

"How did Pierre behave at the church for the christening?"

"He was a good little boy, he sat between us with no complaint and didn't wiggle all that much… not that he had much choice, Rupert was very strict with both of them, particularly when we were in public.

"How was Phillipe at the christening?"

"He was two months old and was already a little character… and he definitely didn't like the water being sprinkled on his forehead…" she smiled tenderly, remembering how loud his wails were as she held him and, despite his wanting his children to be perfect at all times, Rupert's fond comment that _"that boy certainly has a good set of lungs on him."_

"And what about you? How were you on that day?"

"I was a little tired- I had been trying to look after the boys myself, in between my public appearances (we still weren't King and Queen then, although it wasn't long until the King did pass away) but I had come to the conclusion that I would have to get two nannies for the boys… it didn't mean that I didn't try to do what I could for them…"

"Of course not," Joseph said quickly- Clarisse had always been a wonderful mother, from what he had seen, and her sons had adored her in return.

"But, in light of what happened only months later, I was glad that I had some time with them and then had an established routine with the nannies…but I still wished that I could actually be a normal mother with them. But I had to accept what was and what happened and…."

"The boys never resented you, believe me…."

"How do you know that?" although she wasn't particularly surprised that the boys had confided in Joseph about her- she knew that they had both come to see him as a surrogate father.

"There were many a time when they used to talk to me, they would worry about you, even when they were younger…."

 _000_

" _Hey Joe!" Joseph heard a young teenager's voice from behind him as he walked down the hallway after his meeting with the Queen, and he turned to see Phillipe bouncing towards him. At fourteen, he was already growing like a weed but he was very athletic and into all sports, particularly basketball. He often asked Joe to play a game with him, and when Joe wasn't available, usually his bodyguards played with him._

" _Good afternoon, Your Highness."  
_

 _"Come on, Joe, you know you can call me Phillipe!"  
_

 _"I know that, but only when we're playing basketball, not any other time."  
_

 _"Well, you're still welcome to call me it whenever, I don't mind."  
_

 _"I'm sure your father would."_

" _Yeah, I think he would," Phillipe said after a moment. "He's pretty old fashioned."_

" _What can I do for you, Your Highness?" Joseph changed the subject tactfully_

" _You've just seen Mother, haven't you?"  
_

 _"Yes, I have… I believe that she might be free for a little while, if you wanted to see her.  
_

 _"I actually didn't want to see her, I wanted to see you."  
_

 _"Me? What for?"_

" _I just wanted to ask you- do you think Maman is okay?"  
_

 _"What do you mean?"  
_

 _"I mean, she's well physically but… she seems sad at the moment."_

 _Joseph was momentarily frozen- he knew why the Queen was sad, again Rupert had cheated on her, the papers were still full of the story, but he wasn't quite sure how much, if anything, Phillipe knew._

" _I know what's going on," Phillipe said after a significant moment and when Joseph met his eyes, he could see that the fourteen year old was angry at his father. "I know what he does and I know that it makes her sad."  
_

 _"I don't…. I can't…. how does that involve me?" Joseph was puzzled._

" _I know that the two of you are friends- she trusts you more than anyone else I know…"  
_

 _"Except you and Pierre."_

" _True… but I know she feels guilty that she hasn't spent enough time with us over the years, but I want you to make her understand that we know what's going on and that we will support her no matter what."  
_

 _"I don't think I could say that to her."  
_

 _"I think you can and I want you to… she listens to you and relies on you… I wish I could tell her myself but we're not supposed to know anything about what's going on…."  
_

 _"I think she would appreciate it coming from you…"  
_

 _"You think?" the boy screwed up his nose in concentration._

" _I know she would… even if you just say that you wanted to drop in and say hello… share your day with her… just give her a distraction from the world."  
_

 _"Yeah, I could do that… so could P, he was suggesting that…. but I want you to let Maman know that we support her.""  
_

 _"I can do that if you do your part."  
_

 _"I will…See you later, Joe!" before he turned and ran off down the hallway._

 _000_

"That dear, sweet boy," Clarisse said as she wiped away a few tears that were spilling down her cheeks. "He always seemed to know when I was down- both of them did- even when I was trying to protect them from the newspaper stories… I didn't want them to hate their father."

"They didn't hate their father- I can tell you that they both had a great deal of respect for him and his job… they just didn't like how he treated you and they both knew that you were trying to protect them… they were very smart boys."

"They are, they really are."

There was a long silence as they continued gazing at some of the pictures on the pages- most of them were christening pictures (with guests and often without the guest of honour) and baby pictures of the boys, although there were newspaper articles pasted in as well.

"I loved this picture as well," she pointed to a picture of the two boys on the swing set- it looked as though there had been a swing set out in the palace gardens, a question that Joseph asked seconds later.

"Yes, the swing set- a genuine wooden swing set- was a gift to the boys from Spain or Sweden, after we had had a tour there, and they loved playing on it all the time….it was their second favourite place to be, after the lake.

"What happened to the set?"

"It was packed away when the boys grew too old to use it, and I had been hoping that it could be used for grandchildren, but since Mia is my only grandchild and is too old to be on it, it's just still be packed away."

"There may be great-grandchildren in the future," he said gently. "Or, if not, you could always donate it to the children's centre- they are always needing play equipment for their yards and they would love this… especially knowing that it came from the royal family."

"That's an idea," Clarisse's face lit up- it was an idea, and it would be always used, rather than being packed away, hidden until another generation could use them… although, it was still a connection to Phillipe…

"You don't have to give it away, if you don't want to," Joseph said, seemingly have read her thoughts. "It was just an idea."

"I'm going to ask Pierre and Mia and see what they want to do…but the boys loved being on there and I often had my study windows open to hear their laughter….

" _Come on, Maman! Come on out and swing with us!"  
_

 _"I wish I could… it looks like fun!"  
_

 _"Then come on out!" Phillipe, aged six, urged with a cheeky smile. "It's fun!"_

"Again, while I enjoyed him calling out me, it reminded me that I had such limited contact with my children."

"No," Joseph said quickly. "You had more time for them than even Rupert did, and you made sure that you were always available for their bedtimes and their birthdays. You don't need to feel bad that you weren't around, you were more than around and they both appreciated your availability."

"You're sweet."

"It's the truth….and you know it as well," he took her chin into his hands and gazed so intently in her eyes that she blushed.

"Alright, you're right… you're awfully convincing when you want to be."

"That's part of my charm," he said with a smile and she laughed as she reached over and caressed his cheek.

"Indeed it is, indeed it is."


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: Thanks to all my readers and reviewers… you all rock!_

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me!_

"Those boys were certainly cute when they were little," Joseph said as they continued to flip through the photo album, looking at almost every stage of the boys lives.

"I wanted to document most stages of their lives- Rupert had insisted on it but I wanted to do it as well. Just looking at these pictures reminds me of how quickly life passes….I couldn't believe how quickly the boys grew up."

"At least you still have the memories right here."

"It's true, I do…" she gently caressed the cover of the page of photographs. "I haven't looked at these since….before the accident, but now…." Clarisse trailed off, looking thoughtful.

"But now… what?" Joseph gently probed.

"But now….I'm glad that you wanted to see these, looking at them again has brought back so many happy memories that I had of the boys."

"I'm glad… what memories have been brought back?"

"Well, this was Pierre's sixth birthday party," she pointed to one, which showed Pierre and Phillipe standing behind a table where a birthday cake was on display. "It was a wonderful day, we had clowns, a jumping castle…."

"Rupert approved of that?"

"I insisted that they have birthday parties," Clarisse looked at him with a determined set of her jaw and Joseph chuckled.

"You can be very determined when you want to be."

"I was determined that the children had a relatively normal childhood, even though I was Queen, didn't have much time with them due to my other commitments and they were constantly talked about and photographed in the press. I wanted them to experience some normal childhood events, help to realise that while they were royal, they were also children."

"I'm sure they both appreciated it."

"I hope so… I tried to be the best mother I could be to them."

"And you were."

"You're just biased."

"I am and proud of it… anyway, back to this memory, what happened at the party?"

"What makes you think that anything happened at the party?" she looked at him with a crooked smile.

"Maybe… well, knowing Phillipe, I'm sure he was up to some mischief."

"You knew him too well…."

"So, what happened?"

"Well…."

 _00000_

" _When can I have some cake?" four year old Phillipe whined as he stood in between his mother and brother in front of Pierre's birthday cake, the other children that had been invited standing on the other side of the table. Rupert wasn't there, but Clarisse had cancelled her schedule for the afternoon just so she could be at this party. The palace staff had done most of the organising, but she insisted on lighting the candles herself._

" _Soon, dear. We just have to light the candles and sing 'Happy Birthday' to your brother and then we can have some cake."  
_

 _"But I want some now!"  
_

 _"Soon, Phillipe. See, the candles are lit…are we ready to sing happy birthday?" she addressed the rest of the group and the children (who were not awed by who she was, although their parents had been when they dropped them off) nodded eagerly before they began an off tune, not in time version of 'Happy Birthday', Pierre standing in front of them and beaming all the while._

" _Thank you very much," he said politely after they had finished (although Phillipe hadn't sung, he had just sulked at Clarisse's side, sighing heavily and poking at Pierre- who had ignored him) and the children burst into applause._

" _NOW can we have some?" Phillipe asked his mother._

" _Phillipe, give me a chance to get it cut…"_

" _I want cake now!" Phillipe whined in a loud voice, causing some of the children to look at him._

" _Phillipe, it's coming," she said patiently, turning to receive a knife from a hovering maid before she heard a cry and she turned to see Phillipe had shoved Pierre aside and had buried his hand in Pierre's soccer ball shaped cake._

" _Mama! He's being bad! He has to wait for cake…" Pierre complained tearfully. "He didn't wait!"  
_

 _"PHILLIPE!"_

 _00000_

"So what happened then?"

"As soon as I pulled Phillipe away from the cake, he threw a massive tantrum… he was covered in cake- well, there was still enough for the other children, thank goodness- and wanted more. I had to send him back upstairs to get changed before he came back down. Of course, he was only four, so he really didn't understand what he was doing…"

"I think he did and you know that he knew what he was doing," he gave her a meaningful look and she laughed sheepishly.

"Alright, I knew perfectly well that he had been deliberately naughty but, at the time, I made allowances for him… Rupert thought I spoiled him (and I probably did) but I hope that I didn't ruin him too much…Rupert thought I had ruined him…"

"You didn't, you were great with both of them…you made allowances for both of them but it didn't affect them too badly…"

"I always had the feeling that Rupert blamed me somewhat for Pierre's abdication… and I don't think he ever truly forgave me for that."

Clarisse looked sad for a moment- it had certainly affection their relationship (although their relationship hadn't been that strong in many years, thanks to Rupert's 'choices' in regards to the women he saw), but she had long since made her peace with it and she was thrilled that Pierre was back in Genovia and back in her life.

"That is absolutely ridiculous, you supported his choices but Pierre made the decision to abdicate on his own."

"It didn't stop some members of parliament openly saying that it was my fault that he had abdicated," she said softly and Joseph scowled- he could still remember some of the rumours that had been flying around in regards to the abdication, particularly that rumour, but he had always ignored them, knowing the truth.

 _00000_

" _I wish I could say something to those men, make them realise that they are being foolish," Joseph said angrily to the Queen after being present at a meeting where Viscount Mabrey and another of his cronies had intimated that Pierre's abdication had caused the illness and death of the King, thanks to her…_

" _There's nothing you can do, I've just learnt to ignore it," the Queen said wearily as she sat back in her chair and watched Joseph pace the room._

" _I wish I could deck them both for what they're saying and the rumours they're spreading!"_

" _That is very sweet of you, Joseph, but that would only give them more ammunition."_

 _Clarisse was well aware of the rumours that had been spread only months earlier upon the King's death- they had been there earlier, after Pierre's abdication, but they had been stirred up again since Rupert's passing but there was nothing she could do about it._

" _Phillipe's furious as well, he has had the same thoughts as you but I've tried to calm him down."  
_

 _"I'm sure I can understand why he's angry… there are people who are trying to cause trouble for you and the country and he, as well as I, are trying to defend your honour."  
_

 _"That's sweet, but if you try and do anything, it's going to make it all the worse for me. I already have to deal with these men on an almost daily basis- I cannot afford to let you or Phillipe try and defend me."_

" _So you're happy enough to let the country think that about you?" Joseph looked even more incensed at her words._

" _The people aren't silly, they know the truth… that's all that matters to me."_

 _00000_

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought the subject up," Joseph said after a long silence and Clarisse smiled vaguely.

"It's alright, it doesn't pain me much anymore, I've made my peace with it…and I was right, the people weren't silly, they saw through all the muck raking and the rumours…but what truly mattered was the most important people knew the truth."

"They always did…so," he continued, wishing to change the subject, taking them away from painful, sensitive subjects. "Were there many more memorable birthdays?"

Clarisse smiled at his words.

"Of course. Children always make life interesting and their birthdays were always fun…Rupert did attend a few, I'll have to say that for him, he did make an effort for his sons occasionally… but there were some interesting times…"

"Such as?"

"The time the boys got chicken pox the day before the party… it was Phillipe's seventh birthday, I believe, and he had been looking forward to his party all year, he had wanted animals, a jumping castle, lots of food, his friends…"

"I assume he was extremely disappointed?"

"Extremely disappointed was the understatement of the year…he was so upset, he threw tantrum after tantrum, spiking a temperature and having to stay in bed a little longer than his brother."

"So, what did you do?"

"As soon as they were well, we had the party then- it probably meant much more to him knowing that we had the party for him, even though it wasn't on his birthday."

"Yes, it was…"

"How do you know?" Clarisse was surprised- her sons had confided far more in Joseph than she had realised, not that she had a problem with that, they needed someone they could turn to, and their father was usually absent…

"Whenever I met him on his birthday, particularly when he was older, he always mentioned the birthday he didn't celebrate on his birthday but on another day…."

" _It was like I had two birthdays that year! I will always be grateful that my mother chose to do that instead of me missing out completely."_

"That was a case of me spoiling Phillipe a little too much, as Rupert accused me of, but I didn't care- I didn't want my son missing out on even one birthday, although each birthday made me more and more aware that they were growing up."

"But at least you have got your memories here," he pointed down at the photos on display on their laps and she nodded. "And you can visit them any time you want."

"That's true, that is so true," she smiled at him. "I can visit any time I want…."


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: I'm on holidays at the moment, so I have a chance to sit down and do some proper writing…yay!_

 _Thanks to all my readers and reviewers- you all rock!_

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me_

"I have to thank you," Clarisse said suddenly, much to Joseph's surprise.

"Thank me? What for? I didn't do anything."  
"Oh, but you did," she gave him a warm smile. "If we hadn't got our wedding album today, we wouldn't have had the chance to go through it, remembering our wedding day and then… you wouldn't have wanted to look through some of these other albums and I never would have had the chance to realise that there are still many, many wonderful memories in here… that I wouldn't have had the chance to visit memories I hadn't thought about in a long time."

"Well, I'm glad to have been of some assistance," Joseph quipped with a grin.

"No, seriously, Joseph," she set the album she had been bringing back from the shelf (she couldn't believe they had already gone through two albums and she had really been enjoying herself) on the coffee table in front of them and sat down next to him, taking his hands in hers. "I had been avoiding looking at these albums for so long, I cannot remember the reasons why… yes, partly because I didn't want to see Phillipe in them and know that he is gone and I will never see him again…"

"Which is perfectly understandable."

"But also partly because I didn't want to relieve my relationship with Rupert… all these happy family pictures and I felt that they were a bit hypocritical…"

"Again that's perfectly understandable."

"But today, I've just realised that that my attitude wasn't healthy, I was trying to repress memories that, albeit painful, had made my marriage and were part of my life. Yes, losing Phillipe was one of the worst things that I ever went through, but trying to avoid his memory, not talking about him, is even worse- it is almost as if I'm trying to forget him and I cannot do that, I don't want to do that, he wouldn't want me to do that."

"Of course he wouldn't… he would want to be remembered with joy and he would want you to be happy."

"Exactly. So, thank you for making me show you these albums… I just didn't appreciate how important these memories are to me."

"I'm glad I was able to do that for you," he said gently. "Although I was more curious to see how beautiful you had been when you were younger."

"And what did you discover?" Clarisse asked with a crooked, impish smile.

"You were definitely beautiful when you were younger."

"How about now?"

"You are infinitely MORE beautiful than you were back then."

"Now? I don't think so, I'm older, and I've got wrinkles…."

"They are signs of your life, that you have lived… and I love each and every one of them," he leaned over and kissed her neck gently. "Not that you have many of them..."

"You fibber."

"I'm telling you the truth- you don't have many wrinkles, and you're much more beautiful now than when you were younger."

"So… you weren't attracted to me when I was younger?" she teased, pouting.

"I didn't say that…. I was very, very attracted to you when you were younger… of course, there wasn't anything I could do… but you're gorgeous now, motherhood, marriage and running a country have matured you… but you know that I've always thought you are gorgeous….you're just getting me to pander to your ego…" he teased, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her close, nuzzling her neck playfully. "Aren't you, my darling? Aren't you?"

"Maybe…" she giggled coyly- she loved how much Joseph loved her and loved that he loved every part of her, no matter what, and she loved him just as much.

"Anyway," he said a couple of moments later, pulling away from her slightly. "What's in this next album?"

"I think there are more of us when the boys were growing up… I think there's even a few graduation pictures…

"I remember both of their graduations, from high school and college…."

"As do I… I was the one who attended them, Rupert never did…and I often wondered whether it bothered him that he missed them…. I did ask him once…."

 _00000_

" _How was the ceremony?" Rupert asked as he and Clarisse walked down the hallway towards the ballroom- there was a state dinner that night._

" _It was lovely- they all looked so happy to have graduated from school…"  
_

 _"I don't blame them, I was exactly the same. How was Pierre? He was class valedictorian, right?"_

" _Of course," Clarisse said, saddened that her husband didn't know that his first born had been valedictorian, although it bothered her even more than he hadn't even tried to attend the ceremony. Of course, running the country had to come first, it was a lesson she had learnt over the years, but it would have been nice for Pierre to know that his father supported him, even if he had had to leave the ceremony early._

" _It's okay, Mother. I understand that he's busy," was all he said when Clarisse, earlier in the evening, had tried to apologise on his behalf. "Running a country has to come first."_

" _Did the speech go well?" Rupert broke into her musings, and Clarisse nodded- at least, he had helped his son with his speech, even if it was just a read through beforehand._

" _It did, there were no nerves or anything."  
_

 _"Of course he wouldn't be nervous, he's been in public and doing speeches for years," Rupert replied and Clarisse couldn't help but hear pride in his voice- he was proud of him, of both boys, although he couldn't show it._

" _Yes, he did very, very well…" she paused for a moment before deciding to ask the question that had been bothering her all day. "Rupert?"  
_

 _"Mmmm?"_

" _Did you wish that you could have come to the ceremony today?"  
_

 _"What kind of question is that? It was impossible, you know that. I had too many meetings, parliament and all of that to do…and I'm sure Pierre understood why I couldn't come."  
_

 _"But Rupert…if you could have, could you have gotten out of your meetings just to come to even the start of the ceremony?"  
_

 _"Probably, I don't know… but since I couldn't, it's ridiculous to think about what couldn't have been," he said irritably and Clarisse knew that she couldn't push him anymore. But, it saddened her that he couldn't even realise that he was so frozen in his own duty and responsibilities for Genovia that his family had come a very poor second._

 _00000_

"I'm sure he probably realised it more than you know, but he was hardly the type of man who would confide in anyone about his feelings."

"I know… but it would have been nice for him to show some vulnerability sometimes… but that wasn't his way, I realise that now. I always encouraged the boys to show their feelings which they always did… and it was much healthier for both of them."

"They always seemed like well-adjusted boys to me."

"That's because they had other male role models to help them…" Clarisse gave him a look but Joseph shook his head.

"No, it was all down to you, as their mother," and before she could protest or argue, he turned the page and smiled- there was one of his favourite pictures of Phillipe and Clarisse together, at his college graduation. Clarisse had had a copy made and it was in their suite, but this was the original and he always loved seeing it.

"This is my favourite picture of the two of you," he said and as she looked at the picture, her expression softened.

"Yes, this is one of my favourites to… it was just after the ceremony and he was just so thrilled to have finished with college…"

" _I can't believe that I've finished college! Maman, it's fantastic! I actually have a college degree!"_

" _Yes, it's wonderful, dear- congratulations. I'm so very proud of you, as is your father and brother."_

"That was quite a celebration," was all Joseph said and Clarisse nodded, knowing what he meant. Phillipe had introduced her to his girlfriend, Helen, after the ceremony (they had been together a year or so) and while she had been polite and found that the girl was very nice and friendly, Clarisse hadn't felt that she was an appropriate choice for a Prince like Phillipe.

" _What do you think, Maman? Do you like her?"  
_

 _"I do, very, very much so, but you're a little young to thinking about settling down, dear. You've only just graduated from college and you've got your royal duties back in Genovia to consider."_

" _I know, Maman, I know I'm young and I've got other things to consider but… I love her."_

"And then, at Christmas when he had to return, Phillipe came home with a wife…and a baby on the way," Clarisse finished in a matter of fact tone, having long since made her peace with had happened- the past was in the past.

"Yes," was all Joseph could say- it had been a very trying time, the tension in the palace had been unbearable, particularly between Rupert and Phillipe, although Rupert had very unfairly placed the burden of blame on his wife.

 _00000_

" _What did you say to him? He insists he's in love with her, but I'm sure that's not the case!" Rupert almost bellowed at Clarisse the evening of the young couple's arrival and he had summoned her to his study after dinner.  
_

 _"I told him that he was too young to consider settling down and that he had responsibilities back her to consider before anything else," Clarisse said quietly, trying to remain calm but it was difficult with her husband shouting into her face.  
_

 _"Well, obviously he didn't listen to you, which is not surprising, he's a very stubborn young man who doesn't listen to anyone but does what he pleases… thank goodness Pierre is not like that!"  
_

 _"What are we going to do?"  
"WE aren't going to do anything… I am going to talk to him again and insist on him ending his marriage and sending the girl back to San Francisco."  
_

 _"And the baby?"  
_

 _"Who knows if she really is pregnant? If she is, we'll have to have testing to ensure that Phillipe is actually the father, and then… of course, we will support the child until she's old enough to know who she is."  
_

 _"What…"  
_

 _"YOU are to do nothing, my dear," he said, dismissively. "I will handle this…."_

 _00000_

"But he handled it very, very badly, in my opinion," Joseph said hotly- the way he had treated Phillipe, Helen and his wife had been appalling, to say the least, and Joseph's respect for him (which hadn't been much to start with) decreased greatly during that situation.

"Well, there was nothing I could do about it," she said with a sigh, caressing another picture of Phillipe, taken, this time, a couple of years later when he was being his 'public' self and doing a personal appearance. "I hope he has forgiven me for my part."

"There was nothing to forgive, he knew that, as you played no part in what was going on… I think he knew that it was all Rupert and even if you had stood up to him, it probably wouldn't have helped… and it could have been worse for you."

"True, but still…"

"No regrets," he said firmly, caressing her cheek. "No regrets, Clarisse."

"Yes," she agreed with a determined tilt of her chin. "No regrets… and, in the end, everything worked out alright…and we have a beautiful granddaughter…"

"All good things come to those who wait."

"Very, very true."


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: Another story completed- it has been a productive holiday! Here's to many other stories!_

 _Thanks to all my readers and reviewers- you all rock!_

 _The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me_

"Well, I've certainly enjoyed this stroll down memory lane," Joseph said conversationally as he started to close the album when they got to the end of it, the rest of the album packed with pictures of the boys doing their public appearances, with or without their parents, as well as the posed portraits of the royal family that were done yearly, on Rupert's insistence.

"I don't understand why he insisted on that," Joseph said, looking from picture to picture, wondering why Rupert had insisted on them, considering as he didn't age all that well in the pictures- as the years went by, the boys grew older and got more handsome; Clarisse aged as well, matured, but she got even lovelier as the years went on, but Rupert… of course, he was still a handsome man (he had always been that way, obviously, to attract so many women) but, in the later years (particularly once Pierre abdicated and after Phillipe's scandal), he looked older, more careworn… and then he had fallen ill….

"For posterity, I suppose," Clarisse shrugged. "Although it wasn't particularly necessary once Pierre had left the country… I hated doing them, it was only emphasising the fact that Pierre was absent, mostly thanks to his father, and I really only did them because Phillipe convinced me that I should."  
"

I know, I remember…."

 _00000_

 _"I know Maman doesn't want to these family portraits any more, thanks to Father insisting Pierre leave the country," Phillipe said seriously to Joseph as they walked away from the basketball court outside the palace- even though he was now Crown Prince and had so many additional responsibilities now (including attending parliament, now that his father was ill), he still enjoyed an occasional basketball game with his bodyguards and Joseph._

" _Can you really blame her?"  
_

 _"Not at all… but Father is pushing it, insisting that they still keep up routines and the portraits still mean a lot… it's evidence for future generations, he says," Phillipe said quietly._

" _What do you think?"  
_

 _"I do agree with him in some respects…I mean, he's ill and we're not sure whether he's going to live for much longer… but those portraits were in the past- the family has been fractured and nothing Father does or says will change that, and I can understand Mother's feelings."  
_

 _"So, what are you going to do?"  
_

 _"I think we should respect Father and what he wants to do…and when…when the inevitable happens, we'll stop doing them… but I think Maman will appreciate it in the end."_

 _00000_

"That was a very mature response from him… and he was right, I was actually glad we had the last portrait done, he actually looked healthy in that one… and then…" she trailed off and Joseph knew what she was thinking- Rupert had quickly deteriorated after that, his death quickly followed by Phillipe's. "And then… then there was only one," she said simply.

"But at least you were surrounded by others who cared about you," Joseph said quickly, sensing that her mood could tip with thinking about the successive losses she had suffered within a matter of months, but Clarisse smiled at him.

"Yes, I was very lucky with that…." and Joseph was just about to close the album when two loose pictures fell out from the end page, into Clarisse's lap.

"What on earth…" she began in surprise, picking both up, before her expression softened immediately when she gazed at the first one.

"What is it?" Joseph asked.

"This…this was the very first picture of my granddaughter, just after she was born," she said tenderly, lovingly before slowly handing it over to Joseph. "I still remember when Phillipe came racing in to show me…."

 _00000_

" _Maman! Maman!" Phillipe barged into Clarisse's study, not caring that he was interrupting a meeting with her press secretary or that he had barged in, almost knocking over her personal assistant- all he wanted was to see his mother._

" _Phillipe?" Clarisse looked over her glasses at her son- she was rather surprised that he had burst in like, he was usually more considerate than that, knowing that she was working most mornings- and also knowing that Rupert preferred him to give them a little notice (such as a couple of hours warning) before he came into their studies (although Clarisse usually ignored Rupert's mandate). "Is something wrong?"_

 _She HAD been informed earlier in the morning that the Crown Prince and his wife (they were still married, much to Rupert's disgust, although they had come to an agreement that once the child was born, they would return to the United States and the marriage would be ended) had been raced to the hospital, and she had been waiting, almost nervously, for any news of her grandchild (all Rupert would say was that he hoped it was a boy, that would make things a little easier) but work had had to come first and she had become a little distracted._

 _Now, with Phillipe standing in front of her desk, his expression delighted and ecstatic, she suddenly remembered what had happened earlier in the day._

" _No, Maman, nothing is wrong… except that you have a granddaughter! Helen had the baby this morning… a little girl!"_

" _Congratulations, darling!" were the first words out of Clarisse's mouth as she almost leapt out of her seat and raced around to embrace her son, for once not caring about appearance's sake or maintaining her dignity in front of the press secretary. "When…."  
_

 _"About 7am, she weighs about 7 pounds 3 ounces and she's beautiful…I even managed to get a picture of her," he excitedly offered her a Polaroid size snapshot. "I know she looks all squashed up, red and you can't tell who she will take after…"  
_

 _"She's beautiful," Clarisse shut him up with a gentle look. "She's only a newborn… you looked like that when you were born…."_

" _Really?" Phillipe looked surprised as, unseen, the press secretary edged out of the room- it was a private moment between the royals and he would never say a word to anyone about the moment between mother and son._

" _Yes, really, so you needn't sound so surprised… and how is Helen?"  
_

 _"Tired, but doing well… I just left the hospital because I have a few appointments that I have to go to… but I wanted you to be the first to know."  
_

 _"And I appreciate that…when will you tell your father?"  
_

 _"As if he will care," Phillipe's mouth suddenly twisted into a sneer, the happy expression sliding off his face. "He especially won't be pleased that she was a princess, not a prince."  
_

 _"You never know," Clarisse responded, although she suspected that Joseph was right. "But I think he would want to hear the news from you."  
_

 _"Alright," he said finally. "I'll tell him later," before he turned away, considerably less ecstatic than he had been when he had burst in. "I had better go, I'm going to be late.  
_

 _"By the way, have you already decided on a name for the child?"  
_

 _"Yes," Phillipe turned back to her with a beam. "Amelia. Amelia Mignonette."  
_

 _"A very pretty name…"  
_

 _"Yes, it's a very pretty name for a very pretty girl… I'll see you later, Maman," he leaned over to kiss her cheek before striding from the room, Clarisse standing and watching his retreating back, marvelling over the fact that her youngest was now a father…."_

 _00000_

"I take it you will never tell Mia that her father's first description of her included 'squashed up, red and no one can tell who will she take after'?" Joseph chuckled as he passed the precious picture back to Clarisse and she again gazed at it tenderly.

"No, I don't think I will tell her that… although I will tell her that he was ecstatically happy with her birth and thought that she was the most beautiful little girl in the world."

"So, is there an album consisting of pictures of her?" Joseph asked as he set the closed album on the table- Clarisse was still holding the other two photographs- and Clarisse nodded.

"Yes, but it is not here."

"Where is it?" he was surprised- he knew that Helen had regularly sent updates to Phillipe about his daughter (and Joseph usually heard about the updates from either him or Clarisse, leading him to feel that the young girl was his surrogate granddaughter), as well as pictures and while Phillipe had had his own album, he had wondered whether Clarisse had had one as well.

"In my suite…Phillipe made me copies of the most important pictures, but he kept most of them in his suite… and when he was…. I took into my suite- I didn't feel that it belonged down here with the rest of the almost ceremonial albums of my family and the family Renaldi several generations back."

"May I see it some time?" he asked almost timidly and she nodded.

"Of course, I would love to show it to you… I have some of my favourites around my suite and study, if you remember."

"I do- one of my favourites is in your suite."

"Which one was that?"

"The one on her eighteenth birthday… she was so thrilled that you managed to fly to San Francisco to see her…"

"I couldn't miss a milestone birthday, and it was… and thankfully there was nothing going on here that couldn't wait a couple of days…. I was just as happy to be there as well."

"As I could tell," he said with a smile, remembering that the cares of the country had seemed to melt away from her shoulders the moment the plane had landed in San Francisco, and she had seemed younger than her years in a pale blue linen suite as he drove her over to her granddaughter's home.

"We all had a great time at dinner…and you sang!"

"It wasn't necessarily my intention… my lovely granddaughter, as she did only a month or so ago, managed to wheedle me to do it…only, that time, she didn't have Lily to help her."

"Still, she appreciated it and she told me so herself."

"She did?"

"She did," he affirmed.

 _00000_

" _Thank you so much for coming, and thank you even more for allowing Grandma to come!" Mia said with a grateful smile as she walked them to the limo, Clarisse walking ahead, talking to Helen and Pierre._

" _She wanted to come… and I did as well."_

" _Really?" the eighteen year old looked surprised and Joseph couldn't help but marvel how humble the young woman truly was- if she kept that quality (and he knew that she would be able to keep it), she would be a marvellous Queen one day._

" _Truly- you are your grandmother's only granddaughter and she wants to be part of your life, and an eighteenth birthday is part of that; and I enjoy you as well… you are a wonderful young lady… Happy birthday, Princess," he finished fondly, lifting the blushing teenager's hand to his lips and kissing it gently._

 _00000_

"She's very, very fond of you," Clarisse said with a smile. "I can see why…You always believed in her, no matter what."

"As did you, deep down…I'm very, very fond of her too… not because she is your granddaughter, Phillipe's daughter but because of who she is herself, the young person more than the title."

"That's why I love you…you always saw the best in everyone."

"So do you," he leaned over and kissed her gently on the lips. "So… what is the other picture?"

"You're not going to believe it but I found this…" and she handed the picture over, still smiling.

"What…. Ah," he said after a moment of gazing. "An official photograph of us dancing... I remember that ball very well."

"As do I… Rupert disappeared very quietly into the night with one of his ladies and… actually, I'm surprised that no one caught onto this when it was taken… I wonder why… it is very clear that we were close…."

"I have a confession to make…"

"Oh? Good or bad?"

"A good one, hopefully… I requested the photographer take that picture of us- giving no reason except that it would a good one of the Queen and her Head of Security- just for our sake, so that we would have a memento of our past, no matter whether we ended up together or not."

"He didn't question you at all?"

"No, because he knew that I knew he had some things in his past that he wished to hide…"

"But why did you ask for the picture?"

"Because I wanted to. It was the night we knew that things between us were more than just friendship- although we were still both too afraid to admit it- and I wanted to remember that night, the night we made discoveries that would change us and our relationship."

"Why did it end up in this album? I thought you wanted a copy of it."

"I did and I do… I thought I would hide this in your album, so that you ever wished to look through them, you wold see it and remember us."

"Unfortunately, that didn't happen… I didn't go through the albums until now…"

"No, I didn't think that one through, actually," he agreed. "But still…"

"Still, I have seen it now, and I will put it in a frame in our suite, just as this one will be as well," she waved the baby picture of Mia.

"Will you be showing Mia these albums?" he asked, helping her up after he stood up and she nodded, giving him the pictures while she put the other album away. Clarisse considered his question for a moment before nodding.

"Yes. I think I will. It's her history as well and she deserves to know."

"What if she asks painful questions?" he continued as, arm in arm, they strolled towards the library doors.

"After our walk down memory lane today, there are no painful memories… and thank you for that," she said simply, turning towards him and reaching over to caress her husband's cheek. "You made me realise that there is much to remember that is good… especially remembering my boys when they were children…"

"It was my privilege to assist… although I just wanted to see you when you were younger," and Clarisse laughed.

"Disappointed?"

"Not in the slightest," he said with a laugh, pulling her closer to him and squeezing her arm. "Not in the slightest."


End file.
